


Redirected

by She_Who_Only_Knows_War



Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst, F/M, Time Travel
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-10
Updated: 2017-09-10
Packaged: 2018-12-26 05:18:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,902
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12052137
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/She_Who_Only_Knows_War/pseuds/She_Who_Only_Knows_War
Summary: Sakura wakes up in some one else's life.





	Redirected

**Author's Note:**

> All the research I've done for TRTATU has left me fairly upset with how Naruto ended.
> 
> I intended to write a Fix-it.
> 
> It didn't get fixed haha

She isn't pleased when she's jolted awake on her only day off in a month.  
  
By someone banging on her door, no less.  
  
But she's confused when she sits up. This isn't her bed. Or her room.  
  
Or her house. She nearly trips when her foot knocks the Forbidden Jutsu Scroll and empty pill bottles on her way out of the bedroom.  
  
Checking herself for signs of violence, she shuffles to the front door and is surprised to find an older, more worn down Kakashi standing before her. The revealed lines of his face creased deeply.  
  
"It's about Sarada."  
  
A glint of metal catches her gaze and she glances down at her hand. Thoroughly confused. "Sarada?"  
  
"Room twelve."  
  
"Right," Says Sakura, still trying to understand the shimmering rock attached to the silver band on her ring finger. "I'll go see them."  
  
A trip through the village shows Kakashi's face on the Hokage monument. Naruto's as well.  
  
"What the hell..."  
  
Her hair slips over her shoulders, much too long for Sakura's taste.  
  
Ino appears beside her. "I'm so sorry, Sakura! Is Sarada okay?"  
  
"Ino..."  
  
"They didn't tell you, did they?"  
  
"Ino." Sakura drop her voice, "I have no idea who Sarada even is or who her father might happen to be. I just woke up in somebody else's house. In somebody else's bed. And maybe even some one else's body."  
  
Ino's brows draw together. "Look, I know your depression is getting bad again, but it's going to be okay."  
  
"Ino, seriously-"  
  
"I'm sure Sarada is fine, okay? She's going to get patched up and as good as new."  
  
The nurses stop and look up at her when she enters into the hospital. She's ushered to room twelve. The clipboard reads _Sarada Uchiha_ and Sakura's skin breaks out into goose pimples.  
  
"You're taking this awfully well."  
  
"How am I supposed to take it?" Sakura asks the nurse. The nurse bows and sees herself out at what she must have found to be sarcasm. But for Sakura a genuine question.  
  
"Mrs. Uchiha," Says a prune of an old man as he hobbles into the room. "Your daughter is very strong. She's recovered very fast."  
  
"Mrs. What?"  
  
"Uchiha? Oh dear," Says the man, checking his charts again with weak eyes. "You look just like Tsunade's Apprentice."  
  
Shaking her head, Sakura says, "When can Sarada come home?"  
  
"In a day or two, if she recovers quick enough."  
  
Sakura nods. "Thank you." With a hesitant step, the pink haired woman moves closer to the girl who should be her daughter. Raven hair, porcelain skin.  
  
The patrician features of her father, the last Uchiha.  
  
Undeniable.  
  
But she can find no resemblance to herself in the girl's face.  
  
Perhaps her father's genes were quite strong.  
  
A set of red spectacles lie on the table beside her.  
  
Running a hand through the child's hair, she pushes her chakra inside. The girl's chakra rushes up. Vibrant, seeking, desperate.  
  
Sakura feels her own heart skip a beat.  
  
It doesn't take too terribly long for the healing to begin. The doctor watches in awe.  
  
When Sakura is done, she feels just a little winded. Older. "She should be able to come home tomorrow."  
  
And with that, she leaves. The house she woke up in is dark. Foreign. Its spirit makes her feel as though she were an intruder.  
  
And she is. Truly. This isn't her time. Or her place.  
  
Her figure is fuller, characteristic of a woman who has given birth. Her work schedule is on the hallway next to her room.  
  
The scroll is in her handwriting, albeit messier, hurried.  
  
And the pill bottles are a mix of anti-depressants and sleep aids.  
  
An empty bottle of whiskey lies under the bed. Blood stains the carpet in patches and Sakura is incredibly uncomfortable with what any of these could mean.  
  
But more questions than answers. She digs through drawers. Snoops through the kitchen cabinets.  
  
The woman she replaced left no letters. No notes. "Where the hell is Sasuke."  
  
"Traveling," Comes a man's voice from the kitchen. It makes her hair stand on end, she nearly falls over in surprise. "I have been more worried about where you have been."  
  
Pulling a knife from under her pillow (At least this person had common sense,) Sakura makes her way to the kitchen. Leaning against the counter stands a tall, tall man with long spiked orange hair and soft eyes.  
  
"Sleeping," She says. Thinking he might be one of the Uchiha woman's friends, she says, "Sarada's in the hospital."  
  
He takes a huge step closer. It unnerves Sakura because it's a small step for him.  
  
"Is she okay? Have you gone to see her?"  
  
"I have. She'll be home tomorrow."  
  
"Sakura," He says solidifying the surreal fantasy she'd been living in, "Are you okay?"  
  
"Honestly? No."  
  
"What's wrong?" Another cautious step and his long legs have taken him more than half way to her. She resists the urge to jump back. "Are you ill again?"  
  
"You won't believe me."  
  
His brow draws gently, head tilting. "Give me a try."  
  
After a long staring match, she breaks and finally says, "I don't know who you are. I have no idea where I am or what year it is. I didn't have a daughter until this morning."  
  
The man blinks for a moment. "You don't know anything about your circumstances?"  
  
"Not a damn thing."  
  
The man rolls his shoulders. "I'm Juugo. I've worked with Sasuke as his shield for years. But I have a new purpose in life."  
  
He becomes uncomfortably close as he says, "I stayed when he left, to protect you and Sarada."  
  
"Where did he go?"  
  
"To find clues about the true purpose of the Sharingan."  
  
"Woow. Of course he would."  
  
Juugo's head tilts forward. "I'm sorry?"  
  
"Everything is always about him and his freaky tadpole eyes. Seriously, how did you _stand_ him?"  
  
"... Sakura," His body heat radiates. Warms Sakura from a distance of four feet. "Compassion must have been a trait you developed after Sarada..." His voice seems to soften the statement.  
  
He takes the ends of her hair that have slipped over her left shoulder. It's grown so long it touches the back of her thighs.  
  
Contemplating the pink strands, he says, "But your strength before Sarada always impressed me..."  
  
"So when is Sasuke set to return?"  
  
Surprised, he meets her eye. "Next year, perhaps? He sends letters every now again."  
  
"How long has he been gone?"  
  
"Since Sarada was able to say, _Chichue_."  
  
Father.  
  
Not daddy or any other mumblings of a child.  
  
**Father.** Sakura's lips twist. "What does Sarada call you?"  
  
Almost as though guilty, Juugo glances at the photos on the wall. Many are of Sakura herself and Sasuke. The majority have Sarada in them.  
  
But a few are of Sakura and the tall man, himself.  
  
And Sakura wonders what her future self had been doing in Sasuke's absence.  
  
Her hair slides through his fingers.  
  
"Juugo." She says. "Did I... Did I have a problem with prescription medications?"  
  
Orange-haired man moves to the cabinets, sets out two plates and a set of glasses. "You didn't sleep well when Sarada went out on missions. Even those low in rank."  
  
"It's from my own experiences as a Genin, I'm sure."  
  
Rice is dutifully divided up. "Mist, wasn't it?"  
  
"Sasuke tell you?"  
  
Juugo shakes his head, "It was one of the stories you told me about. One of the reasons you weren't keen on Sarada's career choice."  
  
The glasses are filled with sake. And he settles both food and drink onto the table with a meaningful glance. "But you couldn't deny her the chance to protect herself from those that might do her harm."  
  
"Do you think it was the right choice?"  
  
With a sigh, the man sits. "For as long as the Uchiha are around, there will be someone who wants to take them away."  
  
Their meal is eaten in contemplative silence. Sakura decides to return to bed early, sees Juugo to the door. (Not only to be nice, but to make sure the door was locked behind him.)  
  
"It's going to reveal itself in time," He tells her. His hand tangles gently into the hair at her nape and she freezes when his lips press lightly against hers.  
  
_Called it_ , Says Inner Sakura. _That's fucking great._  
  
Sakura's palm thrusts into his shoulder and he jerks back, hand in her hair tightening just slightly. Power displayed in a hand large enough to crush her petite skull. "I thought you were Sasuke's friend!"  
  
Eyes wide, he says, "I-I am."  
  
"Then what the hell are you doing kissing me?!" It wouldn't have mattered to the pink-haired woman, truly. But it was the principal of the thing. To speak all night of loyalty, and then to kiss the wife of the man one owes loyalty to?  
  
Taking his hand back from her hair as though burned, his face becomes a deep shade of red. "My apologies. I forgot."  
  
"Forgot what? That you're Sasuke's friend?"  
  
"That you are not _my_ Sakura."  
  
She cannot respond because he disappears in a cloud of smoke.  
  
xXx  
  
She's sure to be there when they discharge Sarada. The girl is quiet, adjusts her glasses constantly. And Sakura can tell the girl has something on her mind.  
  
"What's for lunch?"  
  
"I was thinking stir fry."  
  
Seemingly content with such an idea, Sarada goes quiet once more. The fidling with her glasses increased two-fold.  
  
"A yen for your thoughts?"  
  
" _Okaa_ ," Sarada says. Sakura tries not to show any reaction to her aversion for the name, "I miss _Chichue_. I wish he was here."  
  
Getting a grip on everything snide, the older woman says, "Me too."

Sarada's favorite movie happens to be Sakura's as well.  
  
The door opens during the protagonist's fight with the woman she loved, the villain.  
  
"Hey, _Otou_!" Sarada chirps. And Sakura and Juugo share an awkward glance. Sakura can't be sure if she's angry with him or her future self.  
  
Was she truly that lonely that she would resort to cheating on the father of her child?  
  
Did she really become that pathetic that she needed to be with someone to be happy?  
  
But she couldn't have been that happy if she had brought her past self into the future so she didn't have to live in it anymore.  
  
While cleaning the master bedroom, Sakura came to the conclusion that her future self had tried to end her life, the scroll and bottles were splashed with blood.  
  
Juugo sets his messenger bag on the table and settles himself beside Sakura. Obviously trying to act as though nothing were different. She gives him a subtle warning glance as his arm settles on the couch behind her.  
  
"I'm glad to see you're okay, Sarada."  
  
  
xXx  
  
  
_Expect me on the fourth day after receiving this missive_ , Reads the letter Sakura found in the waste basket. She reads it over and over, knows it's Sasuke's handwriting. With a sigh, she tosses it onto her armoire. It clatters and knocks over a stack of books.  
  
Cursing her terrible aim, Sakura gathers the books. Notices a note.  
  
_I can't do this anymore. Karin is pregnant again._  
  
**Again?**  
  
And Sakura profoundly wonders if Sarada is hers at all.  
  
She's getting ready for bed. Brushing her hair and counting the days she has left. Juugo is hesitant as he steps inside, toweling off his hair, a pair of sweats hang loosely at his hips.  
  
He isn't bad to look at. And, in different circumstances, she may even have a desire to date him. He clears his throat. Smiles sheepishly as she actually looks at his face.  
  
"Sorry?" He says.  
  
"What are you still doing here?"  
  
"I usually stay the night," He admits. "Sarada thought something was going on when I tried to leave."  
  
"No she didn't."  
  
"Sarada is just as intuitive as you are."  
  
"But Sarada isn't actually my daughter, is she?" Asks Sakura, stepping into Juugo's space. He slides his foot back just enough to get out of striking range.  
  
"No. She isn't."  
  
"Why am I caring for her, instead of this Karin woman?"  
  
"Karin wanted to abort but Sasuke wouldn't let her. He couldn't stand the idea of another Uchiha lost."  
  
She shakes her head at Sasuke's utter selfishness.  
  
"You've made a better mother than Karin ever could have."  
  
But Sakura can't bring herself to care. She had always envisioned giving birth to her own children. Not adopting. Knowing Sarada was living a lie, left Sakura feeling like her potential would never be passed down.  
  
Juugo is careful when he brushes past her, settles himself in her bed.  
  
"Did I want to have any children of my own?"  
  
"You did, but you were afraid of treating them better than Sarada."  
  
  
xXx  
  
When she gets home from her job, Juugo is gone. But Sasuke is waiting for her on the couch. "Sakura."  
  
"Sasuke."  
  
"How's Sarada?"

"What do you care?" She asks. "You've been gone since she first learned your name."  
  
"She is my blood."  
  
"And you are a shitty father."  
  
Standing as graceful as a hungry panther, he stalks closer. "This isn't like you."  
  
"Marrying you wasn't like me, either."  
  
"We made a deal, woman."  
  
Channeling her Future Self, she says, "Deal or no deal, if you actually cared about being more than a Bloodline donor, you would have been around a lot more"  
  
Eyes narrowed, he says: "I wish it wasn't like this every single time."  
  
"Like what?"  
  
"If we hadn't convinced everyone that you actually bore Sarada, I would take her from you."  
  
Wondering if he treated her the same way while she was raising their daughter, Sakura says, "So you can force Karin to mother her, too?"  
  
"No one forced you, Sakura. You wanted her safe and accepted by Konoha, didn't you? Isn't that what you said when we entered into this?"  
  
"Are you going to let Karin abort this time?"  
  
Clenching his fists, turning towards the door, he stops with his hand on the handle. "You aren't going to keep my son, you conniving bitch."  
  
Thinking about all the ways she could kill him, she lets out a measured, "Of fucking course you would."  
  
Before she even knows what she's doing, her hands form symbols, shove against his shoulder. His head is knocked against the door. "You better pray none of your descendants have girls either."  
  
Spinning around on her, Sharingan ablaze. "How dare you fucking touch me."  
  
" _Chichue!_ "  
  
Saved by Sarada.  
  
A grudging charade is put on. He pretends to love Sakura. But she refuses to pretend anymore. Does what Future Sakura couldn't do for her own reasons.  
  
After he leaves on his Quest for the Truth or whatever,  Sakura sits in silence. A cup of coffee in her hands as she contemplates.  
  
Had she truly conned him, her Future Self?  
  
And what did he mean by _'Always like this'_?  
  
"He thinks you are always trying to come between himself and Karin," Says Juugo.  
  
"I'm divorcing him."  
  
Juugo stops mid-pour to stare. "What?"  
  
"He can't have our safety anymore if he lied about coming back and staying back. I don't know what my reasons were any more than he did, but he has always assumed the worst about me."  
  
"Marrying you meant he couldn't marry Karin."  
  
"Did he want to?"  
  
Juugo shrugs, putting sugar into his coffee.  
  
"He'll get to now. Fuck him."  
  
"And Sarada?"  
  
Steepling her fingers, she says, "I will simply explain that sometimes, people change. Love can be out of reach if a person is gone for too long."  
  
"Will you let him see her?"  
  
"Only for her benefit. I'm not so fucked up as to deny her that."  
  
xXx  
  
It's that night she cuts her hair all over again.  
  
She feels lighter than she has in a very long time. Sarada watches her warily, confused.  
  
"I think we should do some travelling ourselves. Maybe even move." Says Sakura. She meets Sarada's dark gaze in the mirror. "How does that sound?"  
  
"I heard what you said to _Otou._ "  
  
"I'm cheating-"  
  
"I know what you did, mom." There's tears streaming down her face. "Why do you keep messing things up for me with father?"  
  
Stifling the empathy, Sakura says, "He makes it hard for you. I've done everything I can do."  
  
"No, you cheated on him!"  
  
Trying to remember that Sarada is only a child, stifling her headache, she says, "I can't change his mind.  
  
But I can change how I handle our circumstances and my life."  
  
Sarada's thin lips and heavy glare give Sakura an unshakable sadness.  
  
xXx  
  
"I'm leaving, Naruto."  
  
"Sakura-chan, you can't!"  
  
"I need a change of scenery."  
  
Standing, Naruto walks around the desk. "You know that's politically dangerous."  
  
_It's always about the Uchiha,_ She thinks. "Do you really think I'm going to hand out Sarada's bloodline?"  
  
"We can't protect you from anyone who might want to take it from her."  
  
"But I can," She says. She isn't on the same level as her Future Self, but she has been devouring the woman's notes and improving by leaps and bounds.  
  
She's ready.  
  
"No. I can't authorize this."  
  
Standing tall and breathing deep, she calls his bluff. "Then I will become a _Nuke-nin_."

xXx  
  
Juugo stands at the gates, his things are packed, too.  
  
Sakura can't hide her surprise. "You're coming with us?"  
  
"I am your shield. Of course I'm coming."  
  
She leaves her wedding band to the crows.


End file.
